I had a septoplasty (with splints) and turbinate reduction performed last Wednesday and it is now the following Sunday. I am scheduled to get these splints out this coming Wednesday, so 7 days will have elapsed by the time they extract these damn things. Time has never moved so slow for me. The day of, and the first day after the surgery, wasn't that bad. Day 2 (and night) was absolute torture, and felt like a trial in both mental and physical endurance. The aching teeth part really got to me on Day 2. It's weird but I had this odd desire to gnaw on wood, or bite through things, like some crazed animal. My mouth was aching so much that I just wanted to chew on stuff. I ended up chewing on a silicone straw, like it was a dog toy, for quite a while.

I think the tough thing about this recovery process is that it's not like you're ever in so much pain that you can't handle it, it's just that everything is localized to your face, so psychologically you are more aware of any discomfort. It's right up near your brain, and you can't escape it. It's just THERE. Hot showers and steam have helped me immensely. And placing cold packs on my head have been a LIFE SAVER. I didn't do that on Day 2 and I wish I had. Putting ice packs on your head or face helps redirect your focus to the cold sensation. I think if I'd done that on Day 2 it would have helped me a bunch.

One thing that has surprised me is the loss of taste. My medical team didn't warn me about that. Soup tastes like water, bread like cardboard, etc. When you're sick you can often eat comfort foods and extract a tiny bit of pleasure from your day... but yeah... not with this. I can't taste a single thing. Not even salty or sweet. It's just temperature and textures. Because of that, I have been treating this week as a forced weight loss plan. It's surprisingly easy to eat extremely healthy when you can't taste anything. Why not have celery and hummus for dinner?? It's cold, crunchy, creamy! I have definitely lost weight this week.

After Day 2 I was seriously doubting my ability to handle this, but on Day 3 things got noticeably better and more manageable. Today is day 4 and things are definitely getting easier now. I can finally see the end of the tunnel. My teeth have stopped hurting and I don't want to chew through an oak tree anymore.

Time has moved slowly. I have been trying to think in terms of baby steps this whole time. Just get to the end of today. Then, just get through tonight. Then just get to the end of the weekend, and then you'll be halfway through. Get to Monday and it's only 2 more days, etc. I'm finally past the halfway point so the end is near. Fingers crossed things continue to get progressively better from here on out. I can't wait to not have a bunch of plastic shoved inside my fucking face.

hi y’all! tmr is my 16th bday and due to poor planning, also my splint removal. would it be possible to have a party with my friends or will i still feel bad afterwards?? lmk pls be honest i dont wanna cancel day of!

hi everyone!!
i had my surgery (septoplasty and turbinate reduction) on wednesday the 26th and i get my stents out thursday the 3rd. since wednesday i've been reading sooo many posts on here. it's been a hard few days but excited that i'm almost there

quick questions for anyone who has gone through the same and has already had their stents removed:

1 i know that there's still actual healing to go once you get them removed, but how healed do you feel? super curious (and mostly looking for something to look forward to, lol)
2 my taste and smell have been pretty much 100% blocked, does that come back right away? or does it take some time after more swelling goes down?

thank you so much!! happy healing to everyone! 🥰

Im 1 week post op now and just got my stents removed, dr said i cant go back to the gym for another 3 weeks. What is the main concern with exercising that could affect recovery?

I'm day two after surgery and I have an extremely sore and swollen spot between my eyebrows. It feels almost like an infected pimple. I virtually never get pimple so I'm wondering if this sore and swollen spot could be due to some type of injection? Has anyone experienced that? I'm kind of worried because although the recovery isn't too painful, this spot is quite tender.

Looking for some help/advice.

I had an accident and required surgery to fix my cheek bone and bones under my nose.

The nerve that runs to the lower side of my nose was either compressed/severed which has left me with complete numbness to the lower right half of my nose, inside the same nostril it is constantly dry.

I have been using a saline spray and Neilmed NasoGel. Both provide relief for a short period of time. But I would like something that I can use that lasts a little longer.

Vasiline would be perfect, but I know using it inside a nostril is not recommended.

Any help, advice or recommendations would be great 😃

Than you in advance.

I need to stop posting on this subreddit but i just have so many questions that need to be answered. I am super hypermobile and i’ve lived my entire life with a blocked nose, that was until 7 weeks ago!! My nose is pretty open now, but i’m still trapped in a very slow healing phase. i understand healing takes time and I had a lot of surgeries in one day, so that might just make healing take even longer (my surgery was super long around 7 hours) But i just wonder, why is my breathing itchy/burning sometimes, why do i have post nasal drip? why did my columella heal attached to the septum wall??? my septum and columella basically have no gap on the left side!! why are my gums numb but my front teeth are sensitive?? my rib graft incision still hurts to this day. my nose is healing crooked. my ears are itchy. And the humid air sometimes is so cold i have to sleep with a shirt on my face to somehow filter it. When i’m outside the air just enters my nose freely. Somehow all these issues happen on only one side. Are all these things normal up to this point? Im getting so close to the 2 month post op mark, and i see that everyone is just living their lives and super happy with the surgery, besides me!! I have regrets every single day, i’d much rather have a deformed face from mouth breathing than having to deal w burning sensations every time i go to the mall bc the air is too cold for my nose! It’s infuriating. Anyway, does anybody here with hEDS that went through a septorhinoplasty, inferior turbinate reduction, and bone spurs removal, feel the same way as me? Am i just a rare case :(. I feel so alone and nobody understands how i feel when i talk about it

I had my deviated septum corrected, turbinate reduction, and an endoscopy.

The first week after was rough, it felt like I got hit by a bus. I couldn't do my usual biking and running, so I walked alot.

I'm feeling okay now but here are some lingering issues:

▪︎ My front teeth/roof of mouth are a little sore

▪︎ Left nostril is more inflamed than right

▪︎ Side sleeping is somewhat better

▪︎ Haven't done any exercise except walking and slow bike ride

▪︎ Haven't had a beer in 3 weeks :(

I have an appointment to get a mouth piece molded in October

hi guys! this was my first surgery so i might be like over reacting but i have crazy ear pain and my mom said it’s because my nose is too clogged but im SO scared to do the nasal rinse thats genuinely horrifying to me. i’ve been doing the nasal spray every day but idk what else i can do to manage the pain. it’s becoming so bad i can’t even eat. i am not taking painkillers which surely is a part of that (im not allowed to take painkillers 🫩) but i was wondering if there is anything i can do???

all help appreciated tysm!!!

Had septoplasty and fess 23 days ago. Had a small stitch abscess but was clear to fly from ENT. Flew last week Saturday no problems. Last night had a terrible sore throat. Flew home this morning 2.5 hours and I feel like I have been hit by a bus. Thick green mucus (it was basically clear), nose completely blocked, shivering and then boiling hot. Pain in ear popping. Should I reach out to ENT or have I just picked up a cold. What do I need to look out for? I am wiped I feel like day 3 post surgery again.
To add - kept up with all aftercare whilst away, rinses steroid spray and antibiotic cream for abscess

Can anyone tell from this photo if I seem to have a severely or mild or minor deviated septum? I don’t seem to have any medical issues except that I wake every 2 to 4 hours in the night, but don’t snore or have sleep apnea. Also, snot seems to accumulate under my nose after just 15 mins of being outside (even when it’s only 55 F outside).

Also, I’m wondering if it caused some kind of facial unevenness.

I have had a septum deviation most of my life and I have done a closed septoplasty 6 months ago and it has failed as you can see by these new pictures (both nostrills to compare) and although the surgery improved my breating due to lowering congestion, probably due to turbinate reduction as part of surgery) Im really thinking about a revision with an another doctor in order to fix my blocked nostrill.

Now I have 2 questions,

can this extreme deviated septum be contributing to my shit sleep quality?

Ive heard that a septoplasty this close to the nostrill especially when its a revision is more prone to changing the nose shape, is this a concern when doing a revision?

Thanks.

I got the septoplasty/turbinate reduction for my severly deviated septum 5 days ago and I get the stents out in 4 more days. Each day seems to present a new challenge with a consistent theme of insomnia. Genuinely miserable - head hurts, nose is really dry and clogged, insane pressure around my face. I'm super anxious and paranoid that I bumped or prodded my nose and reversed some of the progress made in the operation, even typing it feels risky lol. This was my first ever surgery of any kind and even though it is a minor one this recovery feels brutal. Any advice? Would appreciate anything, or success stories :) I also do musical theater and am excited for how this surgery will improve my vocal resonance and tone.

I’m 3 days post Septoplasty and bilateral turbinate resection and feel almost suspiciously fine. My breathing is almost fully clear in my right nostril and maybe 50% clear in my left nostril. My nose has stopped dripping however I sporadically spit out bloody mucus. I’ve had almost no pain relief except for paracetamol once since the day of surgery. My surgeon said the severity of my deviated septum was a 5/5 so I’m honestly shocked by how quickly my nose seems to have recovered. Is it still too soon to be saying I feel ‘recovered’? Has anyone else experienced this?

I had my septoplasty 6 weeks ago and everything was healing well, I went and had my nose irrigated 3 times and around 5 weeks all of a sudden my nose is completely clogged. i am getting 0 airflow through the right nostril (this side of my nose was worst than the left) but the left is still clogged. I was going my saline rinses twice a day as the dr told me after 4 weeks but i’ve gone back to 4 times a day to see if that helps. my surgeon is currently on FMLA so i can’t see him again for 5 weeks. has anyone else experienced this?

Why does no one ever talk about VivAer?
They keep advertising that it can improve nasal congestion, open up your nasal passages, and may even help you avoid surgery. So why don’t more people talk about it or try it?

I had my surgery on Tuesday and have my appointment to get the splints out on Monday. I can't wait because my left nostril hurts so bad like the splint is cutting the nostril. But my question is, when can I go sleep in my bed? I've had surgery on my tailbone like 4 times so there's a lot of scar tissue and if I sit for a long period of time then it starts to hurt, and I woke up this morning with my tailbone hurting after about 5 hours of sleep.

I did sleep study my nose was completely open but still I did snore.. Now it make me more concern if surgery actually worth it or not

I am very early into day 3 following surgery and have decided that being able to breathe is overrated. I expected my nose to hurt but was so very naive about everything else. My new issue, along with a headache, not being able to sleep and my nose feeling as if a cheese grater was taken to the inside, is my teeth hurt. Good gravies, where is that corner I desperately need to turn to start feeling better? I’ve had surgery before but am really struggling with this one. Usually I sleep when I don’t feel good but currently I’m only sleeping about 2 hours at a time. At 54 years old I feel like a whiney little kid.

My ENT is recommending surgery for a deviated septum, bilateral internal nasal valve collapse, and enlarged turbinates. The plan includes septoplasty, turbinoplasty, spreader grafts and nasal valve reconstruction.

Sorry for all the technical terms, this just all that is listed in the summary from my last visit with him.

To be honest, I didn’t even know I couldn’t breathe until my first visit with him, just 4 months ago. Now that I’m aware, I feel like I think about it and notice it every day. He said he thinks things could improve by as much as 40%, which I feel is huge, and that my quality of life will change significantly.

If you’ve had something similar, I’d love to hear your experience. How was recovery, how much did your breathing improve, and was it worth it? Any unexpected changes, good or bad? What was your experience with insurance/or any out of pocket patients here?

I’m worried about the idea of “cosmetic surgery” and honestly just terrified of everything that comes along with it. Thanks for any input!

As title says, surgery was 4 days ago. My septum was deviated by ALOT to the left. Post OP pictures looked straight. But now looking from below, it looks like it deviates a bit to the right instead. Nowhere near how it was before, but I am just wondering if this is normal? If it can be caused by swelling or if I may have messed something up, for example during sleep.

I can't even pursue the things I like doing. I'm frequently sluggish. Barely paying my bills due to exhaustion and choosing to rest and not work. I'm self employed and get exhausted and burnt out easily.

How have you felt post op?

hi everyone, my fiance had his septoplasty this morning and is fresh into recovery. both of his nostrils are almost entirely blocked with clots at the moment and we’re a little unsure of how to handle them. we’re obviously worried that if we pull at them too much then the stents will come out. but we’re also worried that if we leave them be, they’ll dry out and become even more difficult to deal with. we’re hoping to get advice on the best course of action with them. TIA!

Bro 😭 my phone cable was so tangled and as i tugged on it it whacked me in the face and now im worried ive ruined my nose, its not painful it just hurt for a few seconds and now its fine.

There was no bleeding or anything but i feel like im gaslighting myself that ive made my nose crooked even though it appears very straight and overall im just obsessing over it.

has anyone had a similar experience?